


After Credits

by fanfictioniwrite



Category: Orange is the New Black
Genre: F/F, Post Season Four
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-08-13
Updated: 2016-08-28
Packaged: 2018-08-08 14:19:00
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,700
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7761187
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fanfictioniwrite/pseuds/fanfictioniwrite
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Set after the events of Season 4. Centred around Vauseman and Nickorello but will depict all of the characters and how they deal in the aftermath of 4x13. Heavy spoilers.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Alice in Horrorland

**Author's Note:**

> Warning: Graphic depictions of violence, profanities, possible adult content in later chapters. Mentions of racism and homophobia directed towards the prisoners.  
> Heavy spoilers for Season 4  
> Disclaimer: I don’t own OITNB, this story is pure speculation.

 

**_Alice in Horrorland_ **

After being part of a drug cartel, going to Litchfield and being branded, Piper Chapmen thought she’d seen at all.

But no, there she is standing in the overcrowded corridor as someone is about to have his brains blown out. She and Alex and tried to escape before things exploded but the crowd blocked them and now here they are.

“I can’t, I can’t look at this,” she hears a frantic whisper by her side and tries to turn around and look at whoever’s uttered the words but her body won’t listen to her. Her eyes remain glued to the scene that plays out before her.

Daya’s hands don’t even tremble.

“I don’t think you can do it, sweetheart,” Humphrey mocks, lips locked into a cruel smirk. He seemed scared at first but now even with the barrel of gun, his own gun, pointed at his head, he still has the time and energy to torture them.

Piper bites her lower lip, unsure what’s going to happen next, unsure what she wants to happen next. Suddenly all that talk about being against vengeance, against murder sounds foreign and weak to her, like a blog post on a liberal blog written for the sake of likes.

It’s not real but this very much is.

“Shut your fucking mouth, you piece of shit!” Maria barks as she eyes Daya’s trembling hands. Piper can hear the pain and anger in her voice, laced by desperation.  
She closes her eyes and thinks how some part of this is her fault, how she’s the one that added three years to the other’s sentence and made her snap. Then she pauses and wonders how selfish she is to make this about herself.

“Oh, make me, _puta,_ ” the Humphrey draws out, eyes burning with a peculiar type of madness Piper has never seen before in her carefully built normal world.

The words seem to act like a switch, a catalyst for everything that happens in the next moments.

Chapman later muses on how it all looks like a movie, like she’s part of a scene, something staged, something that can’t possibly be really happening.

It’s all too fast yet at the same time painfully slow.

Daya pulls the trigger and the gunshot echoes through the halls of Litchfield and then the sound flies out of the window and leaves everything in a deafening silence.

Piper opens her eyes before she realizes she’s closed them and takes in the bleak reality staring at her.

There’s the damn bastard, Humphrey, clutching to his shoulder as ragged breaths escape his parted lips. There’s blood spattered all over his name tag and if it was any other day, if this was a story she was reading and not something real, Piper would think that’s a really nice metaphor.

Now she just thinks, _“Shit, shit, shit”,_ frantic thoughts running through her head like a bullet train with no direction.

“Dayanara!” a blood curling scream breaks her away from the trans and she snaps her head to see Mendoza standing next to Daya, her face an embodiment of shock and horror.

“What have you done?” the older woman cries out while Daya doesn’t say anything, face pale and eyes lost. It looks as if she almost doesn’t know what’s going on, where she is, what’s she’s doing. What she’s done. None of her previous composure is there, washed away by the storm that’s been brewing for the last months and has finally hit them.

“ _No sé, no sé_ ,” Daya mutters frantically once reality finally catches up with her. The gun falls from her sweaty hands and Piper can hear a clunk against the floor which echoes through her head.

There’s a pause, a moment that stretches and nearly suffocates them all with its silence. Then the scripts goes on and with horror Piper sees Humphrey getting up, hand still clutching to his shoulder and heading towards Daya.

The inmate stares at him in shock as she makes a step back, her back now pressed at Maria.

“What you thought you’d kill me?” the sadist demands and the damn smirk never once leaves his face, “Think again, bitch.”

Piper turns around looking frantic for someone else, someone she knows and trusts, someone who can tell her what to do because it seems like every time she makes a decision by herself it ends in disaster.

She sees Red, blue eyes glazed with fear. Red is normally strong, maybe stronger than all of them, her iron will forged in the brutal reality that is Eastern Europe which Americans have no chance of comprehending. And yet, now Red isn’t strong, Red is terrified like any of them. Later on she’ll put back on the mask but in the wake of the moment she looks lost.

She’s not Red at all, she’s Galina Reznikova and the scene before her almost seems like a memory of her past.

“I swear you brown folk can’t even kill a guy right,” Humphrey continues, almost as if he’s on autopilot by now, kept going by the immense hatred he has and nothing else.

“Shut up, Thomas!” McCullough cries out and Piper doesn’t miss the horror in her voice. The female guard looks lost, like a little girl part of an adult movie who has no idea how she got there in the first place.

Her uniform is splashed with blood and it clashes horribly against the calm blue of the cloth.

(Later on Red says how McCullough is like Alice in Horrorland. Piper thinks they all are).

Humphrey ignores her cries or maybe he doesn’t hear them at all and staggers towards Daya.

“You couldn’t even kill me if you wanted to, that’s how useless you all are,” he hisses and at this moment, for a brief second Piper wishes she could pull the trigger.

“Shut the fuck up, you sadistic fucking piece of shit!” she hears a familiar voice and ties it to Watson.

Humphrey raises a hand, almost as if he’s about to smack Daya with his own bloody hand.

There’s another pause, a flicker of uncertainty.

Then there’s a gunshot and Piper unconsciously ducks down, forcing her eyes shut as a form of self-preservation. There’s a scream and vaguely she recognizes it as Daya’s.

When she peels her eyes open there’s so much more blood. Humphrey is lying on the floor, choking on his own vital fluids as the tiles of the floor are pained crimson.

“Fucking bitch,” he gurgles but the words come out strangled and barely cohesive because he’s chocking.  
It almost looks comical, like a page from an old comic book where justice is finally served for the main villain. Except this is real and Piper is too terrified to understand what has happened for a few moments that feel like eternity itself.

And then she sees Mendoza, her hand still clutching to the gun and a look of determination, a look of iron will to protect painted over her face.

“What did you do?” Daya shrieks, mimicking the question that was directed to her only mere minutes ago. But those moments are now gone for good and they almost feel like a life time ago.

“He was going to hurt you,” Mendoza states simply, as if the statement is the most natural and logical thing in the word to say and serves as explanation. It does.

“I couldn’t allow it, I swore to your mother to protect you,” the older woman adds and Piper can feel a familiar bittersweet sense wash over her.

She shakes her head, things are for once not about her.

“Gracias, gracias,” Daya whispers frantically as she pulls in Mendoza for a hug and tears run down her face.

Piper idly notices they’re stepping in Humphrey’s blood and she wonders how much can prison dehumanize a person. Answer is, there seems to be no limit.

 

**xxx**

It’s all over before it began, happening too fast yet at the same time remaining locked in her mind forever.

Guys in black attire with guns barge in and Piper has no idea who they are but even in this state she’s smart enough to know things went from bad to worse.

The guys scream at them as they make a cordon and barge towards Daya and Mendoza. The black of the gun still contrasts against the beige of the older inmate’s uniform.

The two women are still hugging as tears run down Daya’s cheeks and Mendoza whispers vain nothingness in Spanish in one last attempt to protect her, to soother her like only a mother could. It’s ironic because really, she’s the one that needs protection now.

The policeman (or maybe they’re called something else, Piper doesn’t care) tear them apart, one of them snatching the gun away from Mendoza’s hand with force before they bark orders and drag them out.

The last thing that sticks in Piper’s mind is Daya screaming for Mendoza, screaming, _“Tu eres mi madre!”_ as the men subdue her.

 

**xxx**

Once everything is all over (at least for now) Piper’s eyes widen in horror as a sudden realization comes to her mind and makes the world around her come to abrupt halt. Something’s missing, like a piece of the puzzle she’s been trying to put together.

“Where’s Alex?” she cries out in terror as her eyes dart in all directions.

She sees Nicky as she clutches Red’s hand, the older woman murmuring sweet words in Russian as an attempt to calm her down or maybe herself.

She sees Lorna’s who seems to be fallen in some sort of a trans. The sweet Italian American girl is probably already erasing the events in her head, replacing them with scenes from old movies she likes as a way to escape the madness before it swallows her whole.

Piper sees Taystee as a guard tries to keep her down but she keeps screaming and fighting, face wet with tears. She hears her say Poussey’s name, over and over again.

There’s Doggett and Big Boo, standing close together, there’s Flaca and Maritza as they cling on to each other, as if the only sanctuary they can find is each other.

But the one person she’s looking for, the one person she needs more anything in the world is gone and she can feel her chest contract with horror as her mind jumps to different scenarios, none of them pretty.

Alex is nowhere to be seen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I loved Season 4 even if it was very hard to watch and heart breaking, especially the last episodes. So, naturally, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to write my own version of how things might play out. Season 5 seems so far away that I decided to write this as I (not so patiently) await it.  
> This is just my version of how things might play out although the writers will probably come up with something much better.  
> What did you think of Mendoza’s actions? I actually have a suspicion this might happen on the show since she did promise to protect Dayanara and she seems like the person to keep a promise.  
> There will be lots of Vauseman in next the chapters and Piper will finally be there for Alex and come to terms not everything revolves around her. I’ll try to keep things going as they slowly mend their relationship and themselves.  
> Btw I apologize for any typos/grammar or spelling mistakes as English isn’t my mother tongue. I try to keep the writing at a decent level but I make some mistakes and hope they don’t mess up the story.  
> So Alex – where do you think she is?  
> Please let me know what your thoughts are on S4 and my version of how things might play out now!


	2. Short Lived Moments in Silence

 

**Short Lived Moments in Silence**

 

Alex doesn’t think, she runs.

The moment she sees that monster Humphrey on the floor, gun pointed at his head it all feels too much, too soon. The scene looks like a horrific replay of what has happened in the garden.

A guard, pushing and pushing the inmates until it’s all too much to bear and they snap. Alex had snapped, she’d killed the guy, watched as the life slowly went away from the Aydin’s black eyes until they were empty.

And now she knows Dayanara will snap too, all the emotions boiling in her chest finally making her drown in them and taking everyone in her way with her.

“No, no, I can’t,” the words escape her parted lips on their own and she only vaguely registers them.

Piper’s there, standing next to her, mouth agape and looking like a lost girl trying to understand the adults’ world. Piper’s there but it feels as if she’s miles away at the same time, as if there’s some invisible barrier between them.

And so Alex snaps once again except this time she doesn’t act on it, instead she runs.

 

**xxx**

Piper can feel her heart slamming against her chest as she shakes with adrenaline in the aftermath of everything that has happened. The guards force them back the dorms where they’ll no doubt be locked up and then later on questioned.

Maybe. Perhaps they won’t question them, their opinion weighing too little if anything at all.

Chapman doesn’t head to her bed though, instead running towards Alex’s on instinct.

She feels relief wash over her like a tidal wave when she catches a glimpse of the familiar smooth black hair.

“Alex!” she cries out as she all but collapses over the bed. Her hands act on their own, wrapping around the other and holding her close.

“Where have you been?” she inquires, words muffled against Alex’s shoulder.

“I ran back,” the brunette says and although her voice is calm now Piper knows they’re in for a storm later. When the shock washes away and Alex remembers, when she connects the dots. Piper wishes she never would.

“I was so worried,” the shorter woman mumbles, hand tangled in the other’s hair as she inhales her. Alex smells like the closest thing to a home she’s ever known.

“I just, I couldn’t, I couldn’t see it all over again,” Alex admits and now her voice is higher. Piper pulls away and she’s met with the familiar look of panic and dread oozing from the other’s turquoise eyes.

“I know, I know,” she assures as she pulls her in for a hug.

Vause leans into the embrace, her head falling over her shoulder. Piper relishes in the touch, in having Alex once again, having her close, knowing that even if the world’s going down (and it seems to be), at least they’re still together.

The blonde looks up, taking in her surroundings. There’s nervous pacing on the floor, there’s quiet swears and crying. Then there’s Norma, singing once again as SoSo cries against her uniform. It feels like the night before, almost like a déjà vu. Now though things are different and although, yes Humphrey is dead now, she’s not certain if things are better.

Nicky’s lying on Red’s bed as the older woman runs her fingers through the unruly mane of hair and whispers sweet words in Russian.

The soft sound of the foreign language clashes horribly against the atmosphere.

Piper runs her fingers through Alex’s hair, mimicking Red and clinging on to the hope she’s helping the other.

She’s never been good at this, helping others when she can barely help herself. Still she hopes it’s the effort that counts because she can’t imagine herself without Alex at this point.

 

**xxx**

They spend the entire day locked down, torn away from the world outside the dorms. Piper feels like suffocating in the tension that hangs in the air. It’s as if something’s about to happen except it has happened and now they have to deal with the aftermath but don’t know how.

Alex’s asleep in her lap now and she wonders how can the other sleep but then muses it’s better this way, a moment of peace is what she needs the most, even if it's short lived.

Piper traces her pale face with her index finger, relishing in the feeling of her soft skin. She then leans in and places a kiss on her forehead, an almost innocent gesture.

 _Innocent_ , it seems like a weird word to her, rid of meaning between the walls of prison.

She smiles, the world might be going on but Alex’s there, broken but still there, which has to count for something.

 

**xxx**

The night stretches on for what feels like eternity, falling over them like a cloak and making everything more bleary and uncertain.

Piper can’t sleep and soon enough gives up on trying in the first place. Alex’s awake as well and she’s grateful at least the other’s had the afternoon for a nap.

Chapman throws the covers of her bed with an exasperated sigh before getting up and tiptoeing across the room. She glances at the guard, he’s asleep. She shakes her head, do these people honestly care that little?

When she reaches her destination she makes the outline of Alex sitting up in her bunk.

“Hey,” she whispers in a greeting that feels awkward and out of place, as if it belongs to times long gone, times when things were simpler.

“Hey,” Alex mimics her and pats on the bed, as if an invitation.

She takes it in a heartbeat and settles, leaning in next to Alex. The taller woman wraps a hand around her and pulls her in, closer. Piper notices the badly hidden desperation behind the light touch.

There’s silence between them as some inmate mutters _“I’m glad that bastard’s dead,”_ and they both chuckle at the new level of insanity their lives have achieved.

“Is this a sleepover?” Alex questions and Piper can almost see her smile in the dark which she mirrors. She marvels at the unique ability people have to keep going despite everything and how it would be a nice theme for a Smith’s essay.

“Guard’s asleep,” she points out and settles, nuzzling her head against Alex’s shoulder who in turn shifts to her side so she can face her.

Once their eyes accustom to the dark, Vause raises a hand and traces her cheeks. This time her hands don’t tremble and for a second Piper thinks everything is okay, even if it’s an illusion that will only last a few fleeting moments.

She closes her eyes and imagines they’re not in prison, they’re far away. In Paris or Rome or any other picturesque European city they used to visit. Then again, visiting those cities while selling drugs is what landed them here.

(That thought kind of ruins the fantasy and her eyes snap open, met by the familiar darkness and Alex's pale face contrasting against it).

“As selfish as it may sound, I’m glad you’re here,” Piper blurts out, words slipping from her mouth and then hoping this isn’t one of the many occasion she’s fucked up.

She half expects a huff from Alex but it never comes, instead there’s a soft sigh.

“I don’t know how I’d cope if you weren’t,” she adds and stresses on the words, desperation poking from their edges. She needs Alex to know she cares. Part of it is because of her own ego, that fucked up, ugly part of herself that she’s done everything in the world to hide. The other part however, the one she actually still looks at is the one she knows belongs to Alex.

“Neither do I,” the brunette responds after a bead of silence and then leans in, her smooth black hair falling over Piper’s face and tickling her skin. Chapman chuckles at the feeling before Alex catches her lips and she leans into the kiss.

It’s slow and gentle and more reassuring than passionate.

The entire world seems to shrink to this moment and it’s just the two of them, the madness that is all around be damned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yeah this chapter’s kind of boring compared to the first but I just needed some Vauseman fluff! I feel like there can never be enough of it!  
> I really want to flash out how the characters, especially Alex and Piper aren’t perfect but they’re trying to change for themselves and for each other. What did you think of Piper’s somewhat awkward attempts at comforting Alex?   
> Next chapter – Nickorello!  
> Please review and share your thoughts!


	3. Calling Home

 

**Calling Home**

 

Morning finally creeps by and they’re set free after a sharp click, indicating the dorm is unlocked.

Nicky savors in the in the moment, it almost makes her feel giddy with pleasure that at least she’s leaving the overcrowded space. (It reminds her of Max a little too much).

She inhales the cool morning air and lets the sunshine play with her wild hair, relishing in its warmth. For a few fleeting moments she lets herself forget everything, the drugs and the death and being locked up in the first place.

She lets herself forget that there is no Morello, only Mucchio now and let’s her mind paint a pretty picture in bright colours where things are different, thing are easier.

“I’ve always said that morning is wiser than the night,” she hears the familiar voice, one she’s come to trust and love. The words are distorted through the prism of heavy Russian accent. Nicky has never been more glad to have Red by her side.

“Hang in there, _дочь_ ,” she says, squeezing her shoulder. On instinct Nichols tries to come up with some witty response but her mind is blank. The withdrawal she’s going through was sucking up all her energy so the best she can do is offer an idle shrug that seems out of place.

_“You can’t make me do this!”_ a sudden loud cry tears them away from the moment and they snap in the direction of where it comes from. Nicky can recognize the voice anywhere, the way each word is dipped in an almost old-fashioned Italian accent.

“Inmate, this is your job!” one of the guards barks as Red and Nichols jog up to where the scene’s playing out in large, quick steps.

“You’re on janitorial, it’s your duty to clean!” another adds and Nicky can hear the anger, but there is something else too, something hidden behind the words.

Fear.

_“Good,”_ she thinks to herself. Now they know what it was like to lose one of your own.

“Suzanne is in med bay while Cindy is in the SHU with Watson, Lorna,” McCullough points out and her voice is tired, strained. It seems as if she’s one incident away from hanging the uniform and walking away, “So really you should do your duty and clean.”

Nicky’s eyes fall at the blood splash on the floor and the way it seems almost surreal, as if someone just splattered fake blood like on the sets on movies.

It’s drying up and every minute that passes makes it harder to rub off. The air is stained with the stench of copper and it makes her skin prickle.

Lorna doesn’t seem to notice them as she goes on a tantrum. Nicky opens her mouth to say something to the guard, to defend her as she always does. But then Red pulls her away, swaying a finger in her face.

“You really think now’s the time to provoke the guards?” she demands and the anger that flashes behind her sharp blue eyes stems from worry, “Get your ass back sent to Max, as if we don’t have enough going on right now!?”

“I can’t just let those guards make her clean up the blood!” Nicky shoots back as she takes another look at the Lorna, the broom she’s holding and the splash of blood in the middle of the hall.

Red shakes her head, the entire scene makes her think of the cover of _Les Miserables_ and for a second she wishes none of this is real, that it was a story she was reading, one she could quit any point.

“It’s her job,” she says and Nichols is taken aback by the surrender in her voice.

With that she knows the question is settled and there is no room for protests. The Russian takes her hand and all but drags her away. She takes one last peek at Morello (never Muchio).

Lorna doesn’t notice her. Then again she never does.

Nicky shakes her head, drugs aren’t her only addiction.

 

**xxx**

 

Two days pass and things finally begin to settle, slowly but certainly. Piper doesn’t know what she expected but she thought the entire fiasco would have at least some effect, it would change things.

And some do change such as the fact that many people are missing. Watson and Black Cindy are sent to SHU for what seems to be an undefined time after the fight with the guards.

Mendoza has been sent to Max and Piper is smart enough to know she’s not coming back. The silver lining is that Piscatella is gone, at least for now.

“You really think they’ll let that damn shmuck Caputo run the place after everything?” Nicky asks during breakfast as she munches on her toast.

“They’re trying to gloss over everything and make the public forget.” Alex responds as she fixes her glasses over her nose and Piper muses how she’s come to love the little gesture, as meaningless as it may seem to an outsider, “It’s all about PR.”

Red shakes her head, “You Americans only care about appearance.”

“But if we were in Russia we’d probably already be dead anyway,” Lorna ponders as she spreads the butter over her toast with one swift motion of her hand.

Red shoots her a studying look of disappointment.

“Well, I mean, at least that’s what I’ve seen in the movies.” The brunette chuckles as she tries to fix her mistake, “You know like you’re really tough guys with Kalashnikov and vodka and…”

“Just stop talking already.” Red deadpans but it looks like a small part of her actually takes it as praise.

“Isn’t Vincent going to come visit you?” she asks in hopes to change the subject to anything other than what’s going on in the prison. Distraction. This is what her daughters need now more than anything else so they can stay away from the looming trouble.

Lorna freezes with her spoon mid air and her mouth agape, forming the perfect O shape. Doggett chuckles at the sight, “You look like a fish!”

“He’s uh…yes, of course he’ll come for a visit.”  She mumbles, keeping her eyes glued on the tray.

Nicky sighs from across the table, _“I would definitely come to visit you,”_ she thinks bitterly but doesn’t speak out loud, no need to get into another fight with her and be called a what was it … a junkie. As if she doesn’t know.

“I’m sure he’s heard about what’s happened. I mean it must have been all over the news.”

Big Boo opens her mouth to protest and explain how the media serves for the government first and not people and how even if people saw it over the news that doesn’t mean they would care. She doesn’t say it though, realizing just half way how bitter the truth is and reminding herself ignorance is bliss.

“I’m sure he’ll come,” Piper assures but her tone is a little too sweet and she sounds like a kindergarten teacher talking to a four year old who’s lost their teddy bear.

“Yeah,” Lorna nods as she buys into the half assed assurance with not at all surprising ease, “I mean he _does_ love me.”

For whatever reason her eyes fall over Nicky as she says it and she wonders why she needs to convince the other in it. Then again she has to convince herself as well.

(She doesn’t miss the way Nicky flinches at the word love but pretends she does).

 

**xxx**

 

Another few days roll by in equal parts tension and boredom. Although everyone seems to calm down a bit the atmosphere is still tense and Alex can see people lashing out on each other before lowering their voices in case the guards hear them.

She’s sitting over the last remaining patches of vibrant green grass which remind her of the football stadiums she’d seen back in Europe.

Then her mind travels to Kubra and then Ayden and she has to shake her head, trying to banish those thoughts away.

Lost in her own little introspection she almost doesn’t notice Piper until she’s sitting right next to her, knees pulled up to her chest.

“Hey,” the blonde greets simply and Alex turns to face her, offering a small smile.

She waits for the other to speak up whatever’s on her mind and in the mean time they fall in silence, taking in their surroundings.

It’s a warm and sunny summer day, clashing starkly against the depressing atmosphere of Litchfield that looms behind their backs.

Alex can feel Piper’s gaze over her and she knows her well enough to realize something’s bothering her. She’s chewing her bottom lip and the brunette chuckles under her breath because the small gesture has _Pipes_ stamped all over it.

“What?” the blonde asks, incredulous, “Is there something on my face?”

Alex shakes her head, “No, but you have _that_ look on your face.”

“What look?” Piper counters, raising an eyebrow as her mind travels to different scenarios at light speed.

“The look that reads Piper’s worried about something stupid and is about to make it everyone else’s problem.”

“Hey!” Piper cries out in offence as she casts her half hurt, half bemused look.

“Come on, I don’t mean it like that,” Alex argues, softening her tone once she sees guilt flash through the other’s eyes.

“It’s okay, I know I can be selfish and,” the blonde bites her lower lip again Alex realizes that’s probably one of those moments when the other’s going to actually share something.

“And?”

“And speaking of me being selfish…I’ve been thinking about calling Cal.”

“He hasn’t shown up for visitation yet?” Alex asks, almost incredulous.

Having her own demons chase her, she’d had too little time to think about Piper’s family and hadn’t paid attention to the fact hadn’t bother visit or call.

“Nope.” The shorter girl says as she wraps her hands tighter around her legs, “But, I mean it’s not a big deal…”

Alex casts her a look, as if saying it totally is a big deal.

“I get it, I mean he is going to have a kid and plus they don’t really watch the news so…”

The brunette doesn’t speak up, she lets the words hang in the air but the silence stretches on and on and finally she sighs, placing her hand over Piper’s shoulder and giving her a small squeeze.

“Don’t worry, I’d argue my dad takes the worst father award easily.” She says and they both chuckle at the weak attempt of injecting humour into the situation.

Piper offers her a small smile, a genuine one and her eyes light up. Something in Alex’s chest constricts and she can feel nostalgia wash over her like a wave.

Soon enough she’s soaked in bitter sweet memories of times long gone.

Piper’s eyes are bright and blue and for a second it feels as if they’re back in Europe, on some of the countless winding little streets of Rome that smell like freshly baked pizza and spices. If Alex closes her eyes she can almost see it before her, both of them younger and more innocent and locked forever in those fleeting happy moments.

“I still think you should phone Call.” She points out in the end and the blonde nods, offering her a small smile, “I mean how damn busy can he be, it’s not like _he_ ’s going to give birth to that baby.”

They both chuckle on instinct and it’s more so that they’re laughing at each other than the remark.

“I’m so glad to have you back,” Piper says after a moment of silence that goes on for too long. She’s said it before, countless times after their n-th number make up (they’ve both stopped counting).

Every time though it sounds sincere and Alex lets that fact sink in before something in her chest flutters.

“I’m glad to have us back.” The brunette says and forces the smirk back over her lips on instinct because it just feels as if the melancholy is getting way over their heads.

Piper leans on her shoulder and Alex relishes in the warmth of her small body against her own despite the warm summer air.

 

**xxx**

 

Morello picks up the phone but the familiar click on the other side doesn’t make her nearly as happy as it should have.

Their words sound cliché and empty, as if they’re two teenager kids reading from the script of a high school play.

It just doesn’t sound real.

“I thought you’d come to visit…I mean after everything that happened.” She says and tries her best to make her voice sound sweet like honey, to take away the bitterness that she’s stared to pile up over the years.

Briefly she wonders if there’s anyone out there with whom she doesn’t have to pretend and only one person comes to mind.

There’s a pause over the other side of the line and she closes her eyes in exasperation, a small sigh escaping her lipstick stained lips.

“Yeah, yeah, it’s just that I was busy.” Vincent says, as if on autopilot.

“Too busy to visit your wife after someone died here?” Lorna shots back and this time the words are drenched in anger.

“I….didn’t hear about that.”

Morello can feel something in her snap and all the pretense is gone in a second, flying out of the window and crashing somewhere over the yard.

“You didn’t hear about two dead bodies in the span of a few days?” she lashes and can hear him sigh, “What you suddenly have no fucking media outlet in a radius of ten miles?”

The words sound foreign to her ears and they sober her up once they leave her mouth.

They sound oddly like someone else, as if she’s taking a page off someone else’s book. Someone who she’s spent so much time with that she doesn’t know where she ends and the other begins.

 It scares her that the person isn’t Vincent.

“Look, Lorna, my life doesn’t revolve around you, you know?”

The words cut her like a knife to her wrist and she gulps, trying to pretend she didn’t hear.

_“But my life revolves around you.”_ She wants to say but bites her tongue, she’s embarrassed herself enough for one day by screaming in the middle of the hallway.

“Oh…I know, I know baby.” She says quickly, forcing the sweetness back to her voice. It sounds more fake with each passing word but she swallows and continues, “I’m sorry, I know you’re very busy.”

Vincent seems pleased enough with the answer, “I’ll visit you soon, okay?”

“Okay.” Lorna smiles as she pays little attention to the tears at the edge of her eyes, “See you then. Bye.”

The line cuts off and she feels empty, as if the little soap bubble she’s been happy about like a little kid has just burst in her face.

She swallows her own tears, puts the phone back and turns to march back to her bunk.

As if they’re part of some bizarre play, Nicky chooses that precise moment to pass by her.

Lorna forces the small smile over her lips while the other just glances at her, offering an equally fake smile.

She has to wonder when her best friend and her husband both became strangers to her.

And whether those are the right titles for them in the first place.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What are your thoughts on Alex and Piper being more intimate with each other, sharing things and what not – ahh, I really want to see that happen in Season 5!  
> And Lorna and Nicky – what are your thoughts? Personally, I really want them back together, I’m not a fan of the random guy…uh, I mean Vincent.  
> Please review!


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